Advanced Petrochemical adding new unit at planned Jubail PDH-PP complex

Advanced Petrochemical Co. (APC) affiliate Advanced Polyolefins Industry Co. (APOC) has let a contract to a consortium of SGC eTEC Co. Ltd. and SGC Arabia Co. Ltd. for construction of a new unit at the operator’s integrated propane dehydrogenation (PDH), polypropylene (PP) and isopropanol (IPA) complex under development at APC’s existing operations in Jubail Industrial City, on Saudi Arabia’s eastern coast (OGJ Online, May 15, 2020).

As part of the contract, the consortium will deliver engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) services for the complex’s IPA plant, which will have a production capacity of 70,000 tonnes/year (tpy), APC said in a Feb. 18 filing to the Saudi Exchange.

The consortium’s scope of work also covers all necessary offsites related to the IPA plant, according to the operator.

APC valued the EPC contract—to be completed within 32 months from the contract award date of Feb. 17—at about $191.3 million.

Samsung Engineering Co. was scheduled to complete front-end engineering and design (FEED) of the IPA plant in second-quarter 2023, according to APC’s website.

IPA technology selection

Upon announcing the award, APC also confirmed the new IPA plant will be equipped with thyssenkrupp Uhde Engineering Services GMBH’s proprietary IPA process.

The process begins with direct catalytic hydration of propene to IPA, followed by a second step involving routing of recovered propylene to the reactor section. A final step entails purifying IPA in the unit’s distillation section to achieve a technical-grade IPA purity of more than 99.9 wt % (dry basis), according to the service provider’s website.

A fourth step for production of cosmetic-grade IPA would require additional adsorptive deodorization steps, thyssenkrupp said.

Project background

This latest contract for the integrated PDH-PP-IPA complex follows the operator’s previous award to a consortium of Tecnimont SPA and Tecnimont Arabia Ltd. for EPC on the project’s two PP units that will have a combined production capacity of 800,000 tpy (OGJ Online, Apr. 13, 2021).

LyondellBasell Industries NV subsidiary Basell Poliolefine Italia SRL will license its proprietary Spherizone and Spheripol technologies for the complex’s two PP plants, each of which will have a capacity of 400,000 tpy, while Lummus Technology LLC will deliver licensing of its proprietary CATOFIN technology for the site’s PDH plant that will produce 843,000 tpy of propylene.

APC previously engaged Fluor Corp. in May 2020 to provide project management consulting (PMC) for the integrated complex.

Incorporated in 2021 as a joint venture of APC subsidiary Advanced Global Investment Co. (85%) and SK Gas Co. Ltd. subsidiary SK Gas Petrochemical Pte. Ltd. (15%), APOC will operate the integrated PDH-PP-IPA complex, APC said in its most recent full-earnings report to investors for third-quarter 2023.

With construction activities ongoing, APC told investors on Feb. 18 the integrated complex is scheduled to enter commercial operations by fourth-quarter 2026.

APC currently produces 455,000 tpy of propylene and 450,000 tpy of PP at its existing Jubail Industrial City plants, according to the company’s website.